Millennium Vessels
by dragonwrangler
Summary: The fate of the Millennium Items have been tampered with, Ryou has solved the Puzzle and Yugi has the Ring, and it is up to them to straighten things out while fighting each other's yamis the whole time.WIP.Main Pairings YBxY,YSxYY,YYxR,YSxYYxYB
1. Chapter 1

Title: Millennium Vessels

Summary- The fate of the Millennium Items have been tampered with, Ryou has solved the Puzzle and Yugi has the Ring, and it is up to them to straighten things out while fighting each other's yamis the whole time.

Rating: M

Warnings: WIP, M/M, Yaoi, Shonen ai, Anal, Oral. **Rape in a later chapter**

Pairings: Bakura/Yugi, Seth/Atemu, Seth/Bakura/Atemu

Feedback: Please!

Authors Notes: This story popped into my head one evening and it seemed like an interesting idea to play with. I expect it to be several chapters but exactly how many I probably won't know until January. Just a slight heads up. I'm not quite sure how my schedule at work is going to be but I hope to update this story once a month. I'm curious to see how this is going to go!

Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh is owned by Kazuki Takahashi. I do not make any money off of these stories and only write for my enjoyment and the enjoyment of others.

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Millennium Vessels

Chapter One: The New Student

Ryou Bakura stepped cautiously into the noisy classroom; almost certain he had the right one. He glanced down a moment at his schedule to confirm that the first entry did indeed have this room's number listed as his homeroom.

"Can I help you?"

Looking up he found an older woman had stepped over to him. Assuming this was the teacher, Ryou handed her the paper and said, "I apologize. I'm new and I'm trying to find my homeroom."

Taking the paper from him, she smiled. "You must be Ryou Bakura." At his nod, she continued. "You're in the right room. I'm Mrs. West. As soon as everyone has taken their seat I'll point out the seat you will be assigned to for the rest of the school year."

"Thank you." After the teacher handed back his schedule of classes, Ryou stepped over toward the chalkboard to get out of the way and took a moment to glance around the room.

As he scanned the room, watching everyone settle into their seats, a short student barreled into the room just as the bell rang. He quickly shed his backpack and dropped into a chair two seats down from the front row by the windows, dropping his head down onto the table a moment, breathing heavily. As he lifted his head back up, Ryou froze in shock as he got a good look at the student's face. Black hair with red tips shot out from his head in a star shaped pattern while golden bangs framed his face. As he looked up at Ryou, just like everyone else in the class was now doing, Ryou felt the spirit of his Millennium Item begin to stir.

"Ryou?"

The voice slipped gently into Ryou's thoughts, a voice only he could hear; as he tried to calm himself down to keep the spirit from emerging. The fact that his fellow classmate he was staring at now had a slowly dawning look of recognition on his face wasn't helping.

"Ryou, is there a problem?", the spirit said, more firmly this time.

Distantly keeping an ear on the teacher as she introduced him to the class, Ryou answered mentally,

"Everything is fine, I'm just a little nervous, you know that."

The spirit chuckled, "Ryou, you'll do fine here, there is no reason to be nervous."

Watching the tri- color haired kid's face suddenly darken in what looked like sheer rage, Ryou found himself disagreeing, in a well- shielded part of his mind. As the teacher indicated his seat, luckily two rows over and five seats back from the row where the strange kid was now glaring murder at him, Ryou answered the spirit, "I know. It's just hard to adjust after everything that's happened."

As if sensing Ryou was trying to distract him, the spirit asked, "Are you sure, Ryou?"

"I'm fine Atemu, really. Look, I don't want to be rude but I really do need to focus right now." Ryou let a little humor slip down their link as he added, "I don't want everyone thinking I'm weird because I'm zoning out on my first day."

The spirit of the Puzzle laughed, "All right, I will stop bothering you then. Let me know when you are free to act weird again."

Hiding a smile, Ryou answered, "I will, Atemu."

Settling into the chair the teacher had indicated, Ryou opened his book and tried not to look at the kid who was the mirror image of the spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. As much as he wanted to ask Atemu about it, Ryou decided that would only distract him from catching up with the rest of his classmates.

Having already missed a month of the school year at a school he had never been to had him at a distinct disadvantage.

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Yugi sat in his soul room and wondered about the new student he had spotted before Bakura, the Spirit of the Millennium Ring, has switched their places, taking control of Yugi's body and cutting him off before he could hear the name of the new student.

Leaning against the tightly shut door, unable now to see or hear what was going on, Yugi reviewed the brief glimpse he got before Bakura had stuck him back in his soul room for the second time today. At first Yugi had assumed Bakura had emerged to crow about whatever he had done this morning when he took control.

Not that Yugi ever wanted to know those things but it did help prepare him for taking the heat Bakura's escapades sometimes produced.

However, even in his brief glimpse, it was obvious that the kid standing at the front of the class was not Bakura- even if he did look like his twin.

For a start, he just looked way too friendly and shy, looks that the spirit of the Millennium Ring would never have been able to pull off. Also, he didn't have the scar that ran over the right side of Bakura's face.

Yugi sighed. From the brief flash of emotion Yugi sensed from the spirit as he was pulled into his soul room, he may never get a chance to meet his new classmate. Bakura had been kicking off waves of fury as he took over and all Yugi felt he could hope for was that the spirit didn't kill the kid for having his face.

The last thing Yugi need was a murder record.

Or another trip to the emergency room.

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Hearing the bell ring signaling the end of homeroom, Ryou flipped his notebook shut before shoving it into his book bag. Adding his book Ryou straightened out, only to find himself face to face with Atemu's double, who was gripping the edges of the desk as he leaned across it.

With his face this close, Ryou could see subtle differences, one of which was the look of fury that was now focused on him. Atemu had never looked at him like that.

Enemies that were trying to destroy the world yes, but it had never been directed at him.

Looking at it, he began to understand why people sometimes just crumbled under that look.

"Who the fuck are you." The look-alike growled in a low voice.

Not knowing what else to say, Ryou said, "Ryou Bakura. Who are you?"

It quickly became obvious to Ryou that he had given the wrong answer. Moving with a blinding speed, the look-alike grabbed a fistful of school jacket and pulled Ryou to his feet, his legs painfully banging against his desktop.

Suddenly in pain and a little afraid of the violence now focused on him, Ryou couldn't block any of his emotions from the spirit of the Puzzle. He felt Atemu surge out of the Puzzle, and saw him appearing off to the side.

And even Atemu froze at the sight of his look- alike.

A sudden, golden, glow in the shape of a circle- with an upside down triangle shape in the center- appeared under the kid's white shirt. As he repeated his question with a yell, Atemu shouted, "Ryou, we need to switch, now!"

Before that could happen, a tall student with cold blue eyes, grabbed the raging look-alike's shoulder and yanked him around. Ryou was pulled off-balance, staggering as the hold stayed in place, and banged into his desk again.

"Mr. Motou! Mr. Kaiba!"

Ryou heard Atemu swear in Egyptian as the teacher came up behind the two glaring opponents and snapped, "I will not allow any violence in here! Both of you need to accompany Mr. Adair to the principal's office, now!" Ryou saw a male teacher had moved into the room during the altercation and stood with crossed arms next to Mrs. West.

Students who were entering the room for their class, settled around the edge of the room, watching in anticipation of some action to break up another boring Monday.

Mr. Motou and Mr. Kaiba glared at one another for a few seconds longer, violence humming between them, before the blue-eyed student turned away and marched out of the room. The fist that was still gripping the front of Ryou's school jacket tightened once before falling away, as the look-alike followed his opponent without glancing back.

Hearing the bell for second hour ring, Ryou grabbed his book bag and schedule as Mrs. West said, "Everyone, take your seats."

Stopping Ryou as he tried to flee, she asked quietly, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine. I just need to get to my next class.", he answered as he tried to get out of the room, hiding his embarrassment behind his long white bangs.

"Wait." Pulling a pad from her desk, the teacher quickly scribbled a note and signed it before handing it to Ryou. "Show this to your next teacher or anyone who stops you in the hall."

"Thank you." As she walked him to the door and feeling the need to apologize Ryou said, "I'm sorry. I don't know what happened…"

Mrs. West frowned. "Those two have been causing trouble since the beginning of the semester. Most likely it was only because you were new."

"You better get on to your next class.", she added, closing the door behind him.

As he checked the map on the back of his schedule to see where his next class actually was, Ryou had the feeling that it had nothing to do with him being new.

And judging from Atemu's reaction, and the fact the spirit was now simply floating silently next to Ryou lost in thought that this school year was going to be just like last year at Central.

Although Ryou could only hope this year, he would not be spending any of it in the emergency room.


	2. Chapter 2

**Title: **Millennium Vessels

**Rating**: M

**Warnings**: WIP, M/M, Yaoi, Shonen ai, Anal, Oral, **Rape in a later chapter.**

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Chapter Two: What's wrong with This Picture?

Seto Kaiba, CEO of Kaiba Corp, an elite multinational game technology company, sat in one of the two uncomfortable wooden chairs set before the high school principal's desk.

He was beyond annoyed.

He gave the principal just enough of his attention to know when a response was need and was trying desperately to tune out the spirit of the Millennium Rod. That became more difficult when the spirit separated from Kaiba to stalk around the room, ghostlike, ranting up a storm.

"You saw it, Seto that was the Millennium Puzzle around his neck!" Seth raged. "I cannot believe someone who looks like the damn tomb robber solved it!"

"It's just wrong!"

And having you in my head is right? Kaiba thought sarcastically where the spirit would not hear it.

For a moment Kaiba desperately wished he could shove the spirit into his soul room the same way Bakura seemed to do with Yugi, before snapping across his link with Seth, "Yes, I saw it Seth, now shut up! I don't need to be listening to you and this loser at the same time."

Feeling Seth reluctantly subside, disappearing from his sight but not his mind, Kaiba began to fume as the principal stood up in a lame attempt to look imposing, now chewing them out while standing in front of his desk. Kaiba kept his eyes on the principal to give the man the illusion that he was paying attention. 'I run a multinational corporation,' Kaiba thought, 'and yet I'm sitting in a high school principal's office letting a man I wouldn't even hire to clean the floors at Kaiba Corp. tell me I'm as much of a disappointment as Yugi.'

'What's wrong with this picture?'

Unfortunately, Kaiba knew exactly what was wrong and he had yet to find anything that could fix it. As long as Yugi had the Millennium Ring, Seth would make Kaiba's life a living hell if he did nothing to keep an eye on the tomb robber personally. He had tried to convince Seth he could simply hire someone to do that for him but he soon discovered, much to his disgust, that Seth was right.

Bakura quickly dealt with the men he had hired- landing them in the hospital within the first day of being watched- before causing enough damage throughout Domino and to Maximillian Pegasus, head of Industrial Illusion, the company Kaiba had been in the process of brokering a tech contract with, that Kaiba had no choice but to deal with Bakura himself.

Annoyed with the entire situation, Kaiba glanced up to watch the principal lean in to emphasize a point. Sensing a shift, Kaiba noticed Yugi's eyes suddenly opening wide as he started and grabbed the edge of his seat, the principal leaning toward him as if sensing a sudden weakness.

"Coward.", Kaiba heard Seth mutter.

Kaiba had to agree, although knowing Bakura; he was probably laughing his head off right now while standing behind his host as he watched Yugi try to figure out why the principal was right in his face.

Managing not to follow through with the instinct to stand up and walk out of the office, refusing to be a coward like Bakura, Kaiba sat through the rest of the principal's little spiel and found, much to his annoyance, he'd have to spend the rest of the day in school. He had hoped they would be suspended, letting him escape this little hell for a while and get some real work done.

Rising up out of his chair, Kaiba thought- Maybe next time I'll let Bakura throw a punch before interrupting. That would have gotten them sent home for sure.

Or maybe I'll just throw it myself.

"As if I would allow that, Seto." the spirit of the Rod growled, reading his thoughts.

"Yugi is not your god-damn Pharaoh Seth, you said so yourself." Kaiba growled back. As he reached the hall, Kaiba stopped so suddenly that Yugi bumped into him.

"But he is in that new kid isn't he!" Kaiba muttered. An almost blocked feeling of possessiveness and lust slipped out of Seth, easily answering Kaiba's suspision.

The truth of the situation now dawning on him, Kaiba muttered "Oh god, my life is over." just as Yugi muttered, 'Sorry, Kaiba."

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Lunch finally gave Ryou a chance to try discussing the morning with Atemu. Quickly finding his way to the library, Ryou pulled out a pad of paper before checking in his book bag and heading for one of the study tables set near the back of the library. As he passed a shelf, Ryou randomly pulled down a large book before settling in a chair and calling to the spirit of the Puzzle.

"Atemu?", Ryou flipped open the book he grabbed then sighed as he realize he had pulled down a book full of car photos. A trick he had developed over the last few years when he needed to speak to the spirit was to retreat to the school library to "study". Very few people bothered him when they thought he was writing notes, and if he had his head down most classmates simple assumed he was stealing a nap.

However, a book like this wasn't exactly right for note taking.

Ah well, he could always say he was thinking of getting a car next year for graduation.

"Atemu?" Ryou asked again. He felt the slight pull as the spirit emerged from the Puzzle. He appeared dressed as Ryou was, blue school jacket, blue pants, white shirt. The only difference was the band of gold around his neck and the black, skintight t-shirt Ryou knew was hidden under the shirt. The spirit appeared deep in though, not quite facing Ryou, his head bowed slightly.

"I'm sorry, Atemu, are you all right? I'm not bothering you, am I?"

Blinking, Atemu turned to face Ryou, his crimson eyes slightly surprised. "You never bother me, Ryou. I apologize if I am being rude."

"It's all right. I was just hoping you might shed some light on what happened this morning." Ryou scribbled something on the pad of paper and flipped a page as he continued to talk across the bond.

"Was that a Millennium Item he was wearing?" Ryou asked.

Atemu nodded as he settled into a sitting position on the corner of the table. That always amused Ryou. The spirit had no need to interact with his environment but apparently old habits die hard.

"I believe it was the Millennium Ring although the center pyramid appeared to be upside- down."

Ryou shrugged. "From the way he ran into the room he may have just stuffed it under his shirt." Ryou looked at Atemu in amusement. "At least I assume that's what he did. It's not like I can do that to hide the puzzle."

Atemu smirked. "It would look a little odd if you did."

Ryou thought a moment about what his friend Malik Ishtar and his sister had told him about the Millennium Items.

"That Item has a spirit within it doesn't it?"

Atemu nodded, the smirk fading. "The Thief King Bakura. His soul was sealed into the Ring by one of my priests when he broke into my father's tomb."

"He was the one who wanted all the Millennium Items, right?"

"Yes."

Ryou sighed. "So it's probably a good bet that he has the Eye." At Atemu's raised eyebrow, Ryou added quickly, "If I remember correctly it was in Japan that Pegasus lost the Eye after he tried to get the Puzzle from us. I'm sure if I check, I'll find it happened in Domino." He doodled a circle in a corner of the pad as he said, "It would be typical of our luck right now."

I mean, first Marik and the Key, then Pegasus and the Eye, and now some ancient tomb robber trapped in a Ring. Just a regular day for us."

A curious look crossed Atemu's face. "Actually he may not have it."

"What make you think that?"

Atemu suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"Atemu, what is it?"

Atemu glanced away as he said, "It is possible the one who kept you from getting hurt has the Eye."

Surprised, at both Atemu's comment and his sudden nervousness, Ryou asked, "Did you recognize him?"

Almost reluctantly, Atemu answered, "He did look familiar to me."

Astonished, Ryou said, "How, I mean…" Looking up at Atemu, Ryou realized his attention had moved elsewhere, a familiar smirk slowly appearing on the spirit's face. "What?"

"It seems your fan club followed you, Ryou."

Glancing over to the study table across the room, Ryou caught several girls shyly turning away to giggle.

Ryou dropped his head in his hand as Atemu snickered. He didn't even like girls and yet it was as if he had some kind of special homing device that just drew them to him.

"Well, you are a smoochy cutie, Ryou. That's what the girls at Central said.", Atemu said with an evil grin.

Sending a glare at Atemu he hissed, "You ever say that again and I'll just let Pegasus have you and the Puzzle."

Slipping off the table, Atemu leaned over and said, "I'll try to remember that, though smoochy cutie is a lot of fun to say." With a soft laugh, Atemu faded away back into the Puzzle, leaving Ryou with even more questions and no one to ask.

Rubbing his forehead, Ryou muttered, "One and a half years till graduation, just one and a half years." as the girls continued to giggle.


	3. Chapter 3

-1Millennium Vessels by Dragonwrangler

Warnings for story: WIP, M/M, Yaoi, Shonen ai, Anal, Oral, Rape in a later chapter

Warnings this chapter- Lemon scene Bakura/ Yugi, Anal

Chapter Three: Crossed Signals

Solomon Motou turned from his contemplation of the contents of the refrigerator at the sound of his grandson's book bag hitting the floor. Leaning out of the kitchen to glance toward the entranceway, he could see Yugi had a bad day even without hearing the barely muffled sigh.

The boy's shoulders were slumped, his movements careful and deliberate, and he looked wearier than Solomon could ever remember seeing him. As Yugi began to turn, Solomon quickly ducked back into the kitchen and waited for his grandson to appear.

Smiling to cover his concern as he washed off the head of lettuce he had pulled from the fridge, Solomon gave Yugi a sympathetic glance as the boy dropped into a chair at the kitchen table.

"Would I be correct in assuming from that look I'll need to put your dinner in the fridge again?" Solomon asked.

Leaning onto the table, Yugi answered, "If you don't mind." Rubbing his forehead, Yugi said, "I'm not sure when I'll be in the mood to eat right now."

"Oh?" Solomon raised an eyebrow. "What happened?", he asked casually, not wanting to draw the Spirit of the Ring's attention. He had noticed Yugi had a look of confusion and hurt on his face as he sat down and was sure the Spirit was the cause of that.

"I thought the school would have called you about it. According to the principal, Bakura tried to start a fight but Kaiba broke it up before anything really happened." Resting his head against his hand, Yugi muttered under his breath, "I don't know why he did that."

Turning away before Yugi could catch sight of the anger he felt sweep through him, Solomon knew he had failed when he hear the chair moving back and felt a hand come to rest on his shoulder, gently turning him around.

Surprising Solomon with an understanding look, Yugi said softly, "This isn't your fault, Jii-chan. I was the one who went looking through your box of mementoes, and I was the one who put it on."

Solomon frowned as he said venomously, glancing at the Ring, "I should have gotten rid of that when I had the chance." Solomon immediately regretted his outburst. He had no doubt the ultimatum the Spirit of the Ring had issued when Solomon first realized what his grandson had done would be quickly implemented if the Spirit ever felt threatened again.

The memory of Yugi lying in a hospital bed in a coma after the boy had kept the thief from stealing the Eye was enough incentive to keep Solomon from purposely arousing the thief's ire.

Yugi shook his head and said reasonably, "It's not that bad. I can handle it, Jii-chan."

Giving Yugi a critical look- watching the boy take an unconsciously defensive stance as he made his statement- Solomon sighed mentally before turning back to the sink to finish rinsing off the lettuce. Glancing over his shoulder as he set the lettuce aside he asked softly, "And if it was bad would you tell me, Yugi?"

Yugi smiled, his body language relaxing. "Of course I would." As he turned to leave he added in a stronger voice, "After I'm done talking to Bakura I promise to grab something to eat. Good night, Jii-chan."

"Just make sure that you do, Yugi."

"Yes, Jii-chan."

It wasn't until he heard Yugi go up the stairs that Solomon let the guilt he kept buried in Yugi's presence fill him.

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After grabbing a towel from the bathroom, Yugi stepped into his room, shut the door, and dropped into the chair at his desk. He could not understand why Jii-chan was so upset that he had found the Ring.

Deciding he wasn't ready to face the Spirit just yet, still feeling a little bad for thinking earlier that Bakura might actually hurt the kid in class who looked like him, Yugi pulled out his deck and shuffled the cards. Trying to rein in his emotions with the simple action- hoping to stay in control of them long enough to ask Bakura why he had reacted so angrily- he leaned back in the chair and set the deck on the desk.

Resting his hand on the top card, he took a deep breath and drew a hand, five cards with a sixth card set face down next to the deck. Scanning the cards he felt anticipation rush through him as he wondered how much Bakura had just affected the draw.

His hand consisted of some of the most powerful cards in the deck- Dark Necrofear, Doppelganger Diabound, the Duke of Demise, Dark Sanctuary and Dark Spirit of the Silent. It had taken Yugi a few months to get used to the cards that Bakura favored but now it was second nature to wield his nightmarish deck.

Picking up the sixth card, a shudder ran through him as the familiar countenance of the Dark Magician was added to his hand. Technically a 'dark' card, the Magician always seemed an odd spark of light in Bakura's weird deck. The card always came to his hand when he needed it, protecting him from harm during a duel. Even in a deck that did not support the card as well as it could.

A little voice in the back of his mind wondered why it had come to his hand now.

Deciding it was simply a sign, Yugi placed the deck back into its holder and pushed away from the desk to get ready.

Stripping off his school uniform, tossing it into a pile in the corner, he then stripped off his underwear, spread the towel across his bed and fell onto his back on top of the towel, the Ring a cold weight on his chest. He had learned the hard way that it was easier to freeze a little than it was to clean up his blankets and pajamas after Bakura had his fun.

Taking a deep breath, Yugi closed his eyes and dropped his soul into the hallway that separated his soul room from Bakura's. He wasn't surprised to find himself dressed in the tight black leather pants and t-shirt Bakura preferred him in, which gave Yugi some idea of how the evening was going to go. Looking up, a shiver of heat slid through Yugi's body as he took in the sight of the Spirit before him.

Bakura was leaning against the doorframe that led into Yugi's soul room, arms crossed and eyes narrowed as he watched Yugi approach. He was dressed in the loose fitting robes he seemed to prefer when he was in the mood to play, the flowing fabric only accenting the trim form beneath them; but his eyes seemed slightly distant as if watching something else. Yugi felt an odd sense of excitement- he was unable to gage what Bakura was going to do from that look as he dropped his own gaze to step up to the door of his soul to open it for Bakura.

Before Yugi stepped over the threshold, Bakura reached out and gently caressed his cheek, running the hand up into Yugi's hair to smoothly tilt his head back, brushing his lips lightly over Yugi's. The kiss was sensual and teasing, stealing Yugi's breath away even as he felt Bakura move behind him, the Spirit's other hand slip across the tight t-shirt and down to his waist. The heat began to spread through Yugi's body, tendrils following the fingers and coiling around his groin, making him groan into the kiss as Bakura's touch made him want more.

Bakura broke the kiss, moving his head to nuzzle Yugi's ear. Yugi arched into Bakura, trembling as Bakura began unbuckling the belt before slipping one hand down to wrap around Yugi's erection and using the other to push the pants down.

After kicking the pants away, Yugi was guided over to the low bed. He felt Bakura shift slightly then sit, forcing his knees between Yugi's legs without once stopping his slow pumping of Yugi's cock. Pulling Yugi back, his free hand reached up under Yugi's shirt to brush across sensitive skin and nipples that quickly rose under the familiar touch.

Yugi's hands caught Bakura's wrists as he began to shudder, his body rising in response to Bakura, ignoring the little voice that cried out to him to pull the hands away. Yugi only listened to the stronger voice that drowned out the first, a voice that craved to be taken by the Spirit. Yugi knew Bakura needed this, that he needed the touch of another to survive, to keep the darkness that surrounded him at bay, that he need Yugi to keep from losing his mind.

Yugi continued to ignore the little voice in the back of his mind that demanded- but what about today? And why are you so sore in the morning when the thief gives back control once we get to school? What exactly is it he is doing with your body? Why are you afraid to ask? Why don't you want to know? But when he felt what his body interpreted as Bakura's arousal pressing against his opening demanding entrance, even as the hand on his cock began to bring him to the edge of his endurance, a cry burst out of Yugi, effectively silencing all the questions that whispered from the depths of his mind. Yugi pressed down, leaning forward slightly to brace himself against Bakura's legs, tears filling his eyes as he let Bakura fill him.

Bakura removed his hand from Yugi's cock, prompting a whimper to slip out of Yugi, and grabbed Yugi's waist to guide him as he moved.

The sensation of Bakura sliding in and out, the mind numbing pleasure when Yugi moved just right, felt more real than anything else in Yugi's world. He knew this all happened within his mind, that the Spirit used Shadow magic to make it even more intense, but it made the rest of his life feel as if he walked through a mist.

He had always been invisible, no one paying him any attention unless it was to harass him because he was seen as an easy target.

But not anymore. No one touched him now that Bakura was with him. He was protected by someone who could not be intimidated by anyone. Even the powerful Seto Kaiba, who kept insisting Bakura had almost killed the head of Industrial Illusions to steal some item the man had. The same man that Bakura said had threatened Yugi to get the Ring.

He could forgive Bakura for that since the Spirit had only done that to protect him. Pegasus had not been seriously hurt and had already returned to America by the time Yugi had come to in the hospital. He could forgive his protector's lapses in judgment when he took something that did not belong to him. It wasn't as if that hurt anyone.

And God, this felt so good.

It was not long before Yugi felt Bakura's body shake, felt the cock buried within him jerking with the orgasm running through him, and arched back into Bakura when he felt the Spirit come. Shaking himself when Bakura's hand brushed once again across his stiff cock, Yugi moaned and tried to move into the hand- but unable to while still held in place by the Spirit.

A warm ragged breath washed over his ear, the free hand pulling the t-shirt up under Yugi's armpits before moving the hand back over Yugi's exposed and sweat soaked skin, causing Yugi to press back harder into the thief as he moaned with desire.

Bakura leaned in closer and chuckled low in his throat.

"What would everyone think if they could see you right now, my well trained little whore." he breathed into Yugi's ear, his voice thick with lust and satisfaction, just as he pushed Yugi over the edge.

Yugi answered with a passionate scream.

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Ryou munched on his salad as he listened to click of the international line and the ringing of a phone half a world away. He wasn't sure if there would be someone there to answer, since Malik should technically be in school right now, but the Tomb Keeper's education was hardly what could be referred to as normal.

After the third ring, the phone was picked up and a familiar voice said, "Bonjour, je peux vous aider?"

Startled, Ryou asked in English, "Why are you speaking French, Malik?"

"Huh?" was Malik's intelligent answer.

"Why are you speaking French, Malik?" Ryou repeated, easily imagining the confused look that was probably crossing the Tomb Keeper's face right now.

"Ryou!" Malik suddenly shouted in delight before switching over to English. "How are you! Sorry bout the French, Ishizu's setting up an exhibit in France. Wait a minute, aren't you in Japan now? You're uncle's gonna be pissed you're calling me! I can't…"

"Malik!" Ryou managed to cut the excited Egyptian off, laughing as he did. "My uncle said it would be all right to call once a week though I was wondering if your sister might let you borrow her computer so we could talk more often."

"Yeah, I don't think she'll mind." Malik answered. Ryou heard a dull thunk through the line- most likely the Egyptian flopping into a chair- before Malik said, "So how's Japan?"

Ryou sighed. "Not much different than anywhere else so far."

A laugh echoed from the phone. "What, someone's already tried to steal the Puzzle?"

"Um, sort of."

"Sort of? I don't think you can sort of try to steal the Puzzle, Ryou." Malik said, concerned. "What happened?"

Taking a deep breath, Ryou answered, "I met someone who I think was wearing the Ring and who looked a lot like Atemu. I'm not sure if he was after the Puzzle or not."

"Shit, Ryou. If he's got the Ring you can bet he will be soon." Ryou was surprised at the serious tone Malik suddenly had. "The Spirit of the Millennium Ring will stop at nothing to gain all the Items. The guy's a psychopath."

"You sound like you've met him."

"No I haven't. But he is mentioned quite a bit in the ancient texts. They say he was sealed in the Ring by one of Atemu's Priests when he tried to destroy the Kingdom. He was the one who cause the Dark God to awake."

Slumping back into his chair, Ryou rubbed his forehead and thought about Atemu's reaction during the little altercation in homeroom. "Do the names Motou and Kaiba mean anything to you, Malik?"

"Wait a minute." The speaker on Malik's end was suddenly covered but Ryou could still hear the Tomb Keeper shout, "Sister! Do you know anyone connected to the Items that go by the name Motou?"

The answer was garbled and Malik's voice was slightly muffled as he said, "Yes, that's right!" Uncovering the speaker, Malik said in a surprisingly mature voice, "Motou was the name of the man who took the Puzzle from Atemu's tomb forty years ago. Kaiba is the name of the company that just put out those new Duel Disks that make the monster three dimensional. The CEO of the company is named Seto Kiaba."

"I believe the Millennium Rod is in his keeping but I have nothing to back that up."

A sigh slipped out of Ryou. "Atemu apparently recognized him."

The Tomb Keeper was silent a moment. "Did Atemu say anything specific about him?"

"No, he doesn't want to talk right now. I think he's trying to keep me from worrying about him." Ryou shook his head. "It's not working though."

"Hmm." There was a pause then Malik said, "Look, I'm going to send you an e-mail with what the Tomb Keeper's have on the Spirit of the Ring and a picture of the memorial tablet that has an image of Atemu's High Priest. I think that may be what has Atemu upset."

"An image of his High Priest? Why?" Ryou asked, confused.

"Seto Kaiba looks a lot like Seth, Atemu's High Priest, who was also the holder of the Millennium Rod."

There was another pause before Malik added gently, "Seth may have be Atemu's lover, Ryou."

"Oh." was all Ryou could say to that.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four- A Hikari's Life

Rubbing his face as he lost focus once again, Seto stared at the stock report spreadsheet on his computer and was unable to remember why he has pulled it up in the first place. He had come into the home office even earlier than normal after a restless night and had hoped that he could manage something constructive before experiencing another mind-numbing day at school.

However, it just wasn't going to happen this morning.

Shoving back from the desk to stand, Kaiba finally made a discussion. Realizing he would be unable to get anything done until he confronted Seth regarding his feelings for his Pharaoh, he turned to the windows behind his chair and said softly, "Seth." As he waited patiently for the spirit to appear, sensing Seth's reluctance, he considered his relationship with the former High Priest.

Ever since he had claimed his inheritance in the form of the Millennium Rod from his aunt and uncle- and paid them off so he never had to see them again- all he had done was butt heads with the spirit within the Rod.

They were too much alike to get along.

And yet Kaiba could not deny Seth had saved both his soul and Mokuba's. After building walls around himself as he ruthlessly took over Kaiba Corp in an attempt to protect his brother from the abuse their adopted father inflicted on them, Kaiba failed to realize how much those walls were destroying the one person he was trying to protect.

However, Seth had. As soon as the High Priest merged with his soul, there was nothing Kaiba could do to shut the spirit out. It wasn't until Seth managed to shatter those walls that Kaiba realized what he had done to his brother. Moreover, Seth had given Kaiba the support he needed to put back together the pieces of his life. For that reason alone Kaiba was determine to find a way to crack the shields he sensed the spirit beginning to erect between them. He knew the spirit was closing up and attempting to lock up the emotions that the sight of the Millennium Puzzle on that kid brought up and Kaiba was unwilling to let Seth do that to himself.

He felt the shift as the spirit appeared before him. Arms crossed, Seth met Kaiba's stare and raised one eyebrow in question.

Mirroring his look-alike's stance and getting straight to the point, Kaiba asked flatly, "What are you going to do?"

Seth looked past Kaiba with a slight grimace. "Nothing."

"Nothing?" Considering what he felt from the spirit yesterday Kaiba found that hard to believe.

"What would you have me do?" Seth suddenly shouted, a confusion of emotions running down the link. "He is the same as I. It is not as if I can touch him. It is not as if we are as we were." Frowning at his outburst, Seth turned away, his entire demeanor defensive.

Quickly analyzing the emotions that had washed out from the spirit before the barriers cut them off, Kaiba asked quietly, "You still love him then."

For a moment the spirit was silent. "Yes." Seth finally answered, almost as if he was admitting defeat.

Kaiba did not respond immediately as he worked out what his next move should be. The fact that Seth was even this emotional about the situation even with the blocks up meant it was something that would only get worse as time went on.

Before Kaiba could speak though, Seth said in a low voice, "And if I did follow through with what I feel right now I would be betraying your trust." The intensity of Seth's gaze as they locked with his was almost unnerving as Seth added, "That is something I will not do."

Kaiba felt a knot tighten inside his chest as he realized what Seth actually meant by betraying the trust between them. Memories of Gozaburo's abuse momentarily swamped Kaiba's vision before he could ruthlessly bury them; but not fast enough to pass Seth's notice. Seth looked away, a pained look crossing his face, as Kaiba took a deep steadying breath.

He had not considered this.

------------------------------------------

Ryou stifled a yawn as he slowly made his way into school. Malik had managed to send him a file with what he could remember about the Tomb Robber and an old photo of the memorial tablet. That one image alone had been enough to keep Ryou up all night.

As grainy as the picture was, the likeness of Atemu and the High Priest were instantly recognizable to Ryou. The High Priest did look like the one who had stopped the fight yesterday. Ryou sighed silently. After seeing that, he had surfed for information on Seto Kaiba and had found more than he imagined.

CEO of Kaiba Corp by the time he was 16, Seto Kaiba had, in a single year, managed to completely dismantle and rebuild his stepfather's company to begin producing holographic technologies, technology that had revolutionized the Duel Monsters game here in Japan and was now set to take over America. Kaiba was considered a corporate genius and was already a multi billionaire even without what he had inherited from his stepfather.

Ryou wondered how many of those accomplishments were because of the former High Priest and how much was actually Seto Kaiba.

As he approached his row of lockers, still deep in thought, Ryou was startled when he heard a voice say, "Damn, Bakura. Where do you get all this cash from? You stealing rare cards from the shop or something?"

Stopping in surprise, realizing whoever was talking was speaking to someone else, Ryou moved to the edge of the lockers and listened to a low voice he instantly recognized answer, "Hardly. Cards missing from the shop would be too easy to notice." A chuckle that sent a shiver down Ryou's back slipped around the corner before the voice added, "I've got a little business venture going that's proving to be quite lucrative."

"No shit." A new voice commented. "Damn, you're raking it in!"

Taking a chance, Ryou glanced around the corner and spotted Atemu's look-alike standing by his own locker with two others- a taller guy with messy blond hair and another guy with dark hair cut short on the sides of his head but rising up to a peak on top. They all had their backs to Ryou but it was easy to see what was happening. The two were watching the look-alike stuff the bills in his hand into a pocket on the side of the book bag shoved on the shelf in the locker. The blond suddenly shook his head as he asked in amazement, "You're gonna tell us how you're getting all that someday, ain't ya Bakura?"

"You'll know when you need to Jonouchi." the one apparently going by the name Bakura answered. Swinging the bag off the shelf to slip it on before shutting the locker, he added with an annoyed grimace, "And it's time I let the little runt out. Meet you at the same place after dark." A dangerous grin crossed his face. "I'm in the mood to cause a little damage tonight."

Answering smiles crossed the faces of the other two as they stepped away. Shutting the locker, there was a sudden shift in the way Bakura stood, the arrogant stance suddenly uncertain. Ryou recognized that the spirit of the Ring had just switched with his host but was surprised at the lost expression crossing the look-alike's face. The only time Ryou remembered feeling disoriented when he had changed with Atemu was after taking a bad hit in a shadow duel and passing out once the spirit had taken over. By the time he came to his body was already somewhere else but Atemu had quickly informed him of what had happened.

It didn't look like that was happening for the wearer of the Ring. It also appeared this was nothing new from the sigh that slipped out of Atemu's lookalike.

As the lookalike turned away from the locker, a pained look on his face as he began absently rubbing the small of his back, a girl with short brown hair cautiously walked up and asked carefully, "Yugi?"

A smile replaced the pained look. "Hey Anzu!" A slight frown appeared as Yugi added, "I'm not late for class yet, am I?"

The girl gave Yugi a sad smile. "Not yet. Bakura's been causing trouble, huh."

As they walked away, talking quietly, Ryou felt Atemu beginning to open their bond a little wider in the back of his mind. As he started following Yugi to class, Ryou asked, "How are you."

"I am fine." Atemu answered then added in a curious tone, "Why do you ask, Ryou?"

Ryou shrugged. "You've just seem a little distracted since yesterday."

"I was just caught off guard, that's all." Atemu replied. "I was not prepared to see the Ring."

"Brought back memories?" Ryou asked carefully.

He was surprised when Atemu quietly answered, "Yes, it did." Shifting out from Ryou to walk beside him Atemu continued, adding, "You have helped me uncover many things about my past over the two years we've been together but only now am I actually remembering them myself." As they reach the classroom door, Atemu stopped and gave Ryou an apologetic look. "And there are a few things you might need to know about the one who stopped the wearer of the Ring yesterday." Atemu shook his head and looked away. "Things you might need to know about me."

Ryou gave Atemu a gentle smile even as he felt his stomach do a little flip. "If you want you can tell me after school. But only if you really want to, Atemu."

Atemu sighed. "You need to know, Ryou." Fading back into his soul room, Atemu added, "Just let me know when you are free."

Ryou nodded. "I will."


	5. Chapter 5

Millennium Vessels by dragonwrangler

Warnings- Warnings: WIP, M/M, Yaoi, Shonen ai, Anal, Oral. **Rape in a later chapter**

Chapter Five: Revelations

Ryou stepped through the doorway that led into Atemu's soul room and was once again amazed at the changes that had happened since he had played against the spirit in the Ceremonial Duel. Though he had not been able to beat Atemu, the duel had been enough to loosen the block that kept the spirit of the Puzzle from remembering his ancient past.

From what Ryou could see, the sight of the Millennium Ring had jarred that block a little more going by the now orderly arrangement of doors near the entrance into the Puzzle. In the past, Ryou would constantly lose his way in the jumbled mess that had existed within the Puzzle before the Duel, but thankfully Atemu always found him before he had gone too far.

This time Ryou had no difficulty finding Atemu. Standing in the plaza that seemed to serve as the center of the Puzzle, Atemu was looking up at the remaining maze that swirled up into the heights. The spirit was dressed in the tight black t-shirt and pants Ryou was used to seeing him in, the golden collar that covered his throat gleaming in the subdues light that was present throughout the Puzzle. For a moment Ryou was silent as he gazed on his companion but, having been drawn here by Atemu's need to talk, cleared his throat to let the spirit know he had arrived.

Atemu turned, blond bangs momentarily obscuring crimson eyes until Atemu tossed his head slightly to shift them back away from his sight. Ryou smiled at the movement, getting an amused glare from the spirit in return.

"You're one to talk, Ryou." Atemu said.

Walking a little past Atemu to sit on a set of stairs that- at the moment- led nowhere, Ryou answered, "I'm not cutting my hair Atemu. I don't care how much it bothers you when you're in control."

Sitting down beside Ryou, Atemu replied, "There's no reason for you to hide your face like that Ryou." Atemu gave him a critical look. "I know that's why you keep it so long."

Ryou found himself doing just that as he felt a blush heat his cheek. Needing a distraction from Atemu's scrutiny he asked hurriedly, "You said there was something you wanted to tell me?"

Atemu leaned forward resting his chin on his entwined fingers as he braced his elbows on his knees. The spirit's expression grew serious as he began to speak, "Yes. Many things. And I'm not sure where to start." Looking across the plaza, Atemu continued in a low voice, "I'm not sure what you are going to think."

Ryou bit his lower lip before saying, "Atemu, don't worry. Whatever it is happened a long time ago."

Atemu sighed, "Not to me."

Silence stretched out between them. When Atemu seemed unwilling to continue, Ryou said quietly, "Is this about the one yesterday who looks like your High Priest?"

Atemu straightened in surprise. "How do you know about Seth?"

Shrugging, Ryou replied, "I mentioned the name Kaiba to Malik, that's the name of the one who stopped the guy with the Ring. He said the Tomb keepers believed Kaiba has the Millennium Rod, though they have no proof." Dropping his gaze away from Atemu he added, "And he sent me a photo of the memorial tablet."

"Memorial tablet?" Atemu asked curiously.

"Yes, the one…" Wincing, Ryou bit his lip again as he realized Atemu would not have know about it since it had been made after his soul was sealed into the Puzzle. Giving Atemu an apologetic look he said, "It's a stone slab depicting a duel between you and him. Malik said the tablet was commissioned by the High Priest to honor your sacrifice so you would not be forgotten, even if your name was gone forever from history. Malik added that, according to the ancient texts, the High Priest disappeared soon after it was finished."

Atemu sighed and rubbed his forehead, his expression pained. Ryou could just hear him mutter, "Damn you, Seth. What have you done?"

"Atemu?"

"He sealed his soul in the Rod, I'm sure of that."

"He was important to you, wasn't he?"

"He was my High Priest, my advisor, and my lover." Atemu said flatly.

"And that was what you were afraid to tell me?" Ryou asked, trying to keep his voice light. "You've been in my head long enough to know that wouldn't bother me."

Atemu abruptly stood and stepped before Ryou, who was startled as he watched Atemu kneel down before him. Atemu looked into Ryou's eyes to said softy, "I also know how you feel about me, Ryou." Ryou could feel the blush burning his face again but was unable to turn away as Atemu continued. "Seth was my whole world but I used that love against him to force him to seal my soul in the Puzzle. I betrayed his trust in me to accomplish what I believed needed to be done." For just a moment Ryou saw fear deep within Atemu's crimson eyes. "I want to protect you from that side of myself, keep you from experiencing that kind of pain, that kind of betrayal."

Ryou didn't allow himself to think about what he was doing. If he did he knew he would not have the courage to reach out to tenderly touch Atemu's face as he said, "Isn't that my decision to make? You showed me how strong I truly am when you helped me deal with my sister and father's death. And I know you will leave me one day- I haven't given up on my promise to set you free. You won't betray me."

Smiling gently, Ryou added, "Until that time, let me be what you need, Atemu. Whatever that is."

"I don't want to hurt you, Ryou."

Ryou shook his head. "You won't, Atemu."

Atemu closed his eyes with a heavy sigh, resting his head briefly against Ryou's hand, before slipping away from the touch, returning to his spot, though this time he was much closer than before. Leaning forward as he began speaking in a low voice, Atemu said, "I thank you for your trust but you will need to be patient with me. The memory of Seth is still strong and I can still see the look of pain in his eyes when I ordered him to finish the sealing spell." Atemu bowed his head. "And because he was my Priest he had no choice but to do my will though it was shattering his soul."

"And you think that is why he might have sealed himself in the Rod? To follow you?" Ryou managed to ask, a little overwhelmed by the mixture of emotions he could sense from his link with Atemu. Love, guilt, and anger were battling for supremacy within the spirit.

"I can think of no other reason." Atemu shook his head. "And it was for nothing. I am hardly the person he remembers." A scowl crossed his face as he added softy in a rough voice, "The fool."

-------------------------------------------

Mokuba was sure there was an argument going on by the way his brother was smacking the dishes down onto the dinner table but he knew better than to ask what was up. He had become used to the occasional silent fight between his brother and the spirit of the Rod and had learned it was best to just wait until they became aware of his presence again; or he was able to talk to Seth.

Though it was beginning to look as if that might take a while.

As he slowly ate his dinner, he kept a close eye on his brother, who had finally settled into a chair and was now simply pushing food around his plate; a scowl firmly in place. Guessing they were at an impasse for the moment, Mokuba reached over the dishes sitting at the center of the table to grab the pepper grinder next to his brother's plate. Seto suddenly focused on him and said sharply, "You're supposed to ask, Mokuba- not lunge across the table."

"Sorry, Nii-sama." Mokuba nodded at the uneaten food on the plate. "You really should eat something you know."

"Hn." was all he got in response as Seto set his fork down and leaned back in his chair.

Deciding to push things along- and able to tell Seto was not going to be very talkative tonight- Mokuba asked, "Well, can you at least let Seth out for a while? I haven't talked to him in a few days." Mokuba gave his brother a smile as he added, "I'd like to show him the new monsters I got for my Capsule Monster collection- they're really cool!"

Seto rolled his eyes and gave his brother a look. "You are aware that I'm not fooled by any of this Mokuba."

A shameless grin crossed Mokuba's face. "Yes I am and I also know you'll give in as well, Nii-sama."

A smile almost broke the scowl as Mokuba watched the switch happen. Mokuba always knew which personality he was speaking to but still found it a bit unnerving to watch.

When he was sure the switch was complete, Mokuba propped his elbows on the table and asked, "Okay, so what were you two arguing about this time?" He was often able to get the answers he was looking for out of the spirit of the Rod. As much alike as Seto and Seth were, Seth was actually much more open about emotional stuff than his brother ever was.

Seth's first response though was a typical older brother order. "Elbows off the table, Mokuba." he said with a growl.

Mokuba made a face but did what he was told. "Well?" he prodded the spirit again.

For a moment he though Seth was going to ignore him until he muttered, "It was nothing." Seth looked down to focus his attention onto his dinner.

Feeling worried now, Mokuba leaned forward and insisted, "It can't be nothing, Seth. You two have been at it since Nii-sama picked me up this afternoon."

Seth refused to look up as he admitted, "It was a minor indiscretion on my part, nothing more."

"What did you do?"

Seth shook his head. "It happened a long time ago, Mokuba. It is of no concern now."

Mokuba sighed; slightly irritated that he was out of this loop. "You're as bad as Nii-sama sometimes, Seth."

Suddenly amused, Seth looked at Mokuba and answered, "It's a bitch when you can't have things your way, isn't it."

Giving in, knowing that he wasn't going to win this battle, Mokuba laughed. "You really need to stop watching those late night cable shows, Seth. It's really fucking up your language."

Catching the switch, Mokuba jumped out of his chair and took off running, grinning madly as his brother shouted, "Mokuba!"

Mokuba figured it was worth the punishment he was going to get for that comment if it snapped Seto back to normal. Well, as normal as he could be.


	6. Chapter 6

**Title: **Millennium Vessels

**Rating**: M

**Warnings**: WIP, M/M, Yaoi, Shonen ai, Anal, Oral, **Rape in a later chapter.**

--------------------------------------------

Chapter Six: A Change in Routine

Ryou scrubbed his face as he wandered toward the kitchen. Passing his computer, he turned it on and went to make his breakfast as the system booted up.

After almost two week in Japan, Ryou found himself beginning to fall into a regular routine. Since it was easier for Malik to get online late in the evening his time, they now had a set chat time before Ryou had to leave for school. It meant he was getting up earlier than he need to get to class, and it pretty much killed any night life he might have wanted, but it was helping him deal with the confusion that now existed between himself and Atemu.

It wasn't as if there was anyone else he could talk to about it.

Since Atemu's confession a week ago, their relationship had begun to shift. It was not an uncomfortable change; it had actually drawn them closer together. But at the same time Atemu's feelings for his High Priest had only grown as more of his past opened up to him. The fact Seto Kaiba seemed to ignore them, or anyone else for that matter, was not helping Atemu's straighten out his emotions.

They still did not know if Seth shared Kaiba's body or not, or if Kaiba actually had the Rod. And that uncertainty was beginning to affect Atemu.

Digging out some fruit and yogurt to munch on as he talked to Malik, he then grabbed a knife to cut the fruit with and wandered back to the computer. Quickly getting online, he discovered Malik was already waiting for him.

**Hey Whitey!**

Ryou shook his head, smiling at Malik's greeting. For some reason his white hair was a source of constant fascination for the energetic blond. Leaning forward he typed in his set response to that greeting.

**Hey, Sunny side up!**

Imagining the Egyptian rolling his eyes at that, he wasn't surprised when to words, **I see we're awake this morning**, flashed up. Before he could respond though, Malik wrote,** Look, I haven't much time, sister needs the computer, but we had a visit from Shadi this morning. **

**I assume it has something to do with me? **Ryou typed back nervously. Feeling the spirit stir, Ryou asked Atemu if he could come out. As the spirit shifted into being, a curious look on his face, Malik's response appeared.

**Sorta. He confirmed Kaiba has the Rod and that he has used it at least once. He also said it meant the spirit of the High Priest was now awake**.

Ryou glanced at Atemu as he felt the spirit tense slightly, a look of confusion momentarily flashing across his features. Typing quickly, Ryou asked, **Did you ask him if the High Priest's memories would be intact?**

**Yes. According to him there is no reason why the High Priest would have forgotten them. **There was a pause before Malik added, **I didn't want to ask anything else. Shadi wanted to know why I was asking, sorry.**

**That's alright. Thanks for getting that much out of him.**

**Look, I gotta go, sister's glaring daggers at me. Talk tomorrow?**

**I'll be here, night Malik. **Signing out, Ryou looked up at Atemu and quickly realized the spirit was not going to talk about this right now. Atemu simple looked calmly at him and said evenly, "I'll be in the Puzzle. Let me know when you are ready to leave for school. I'll join you then."

Not waiting for an answer, Atemu faded away, leaving Ryou to stare blankly at the screen as he tried to figure out what to do next.

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It was the sudden inability to swallow that startled Yugi out of a sound sleep. Choking slightly he instinctively sat up, only to have the world tilt crazily, his brain rattling in his head and his stomach pitching everything in it out.

Yugi blindly grabbed for the wastebasket beside the bed and threw up violently, the movement causing pain to spike through his head and nail him behind his eyes. Gasping once he stopped retching, his throat burning and raw, Yugi tried to find a position that would stop the sensation his brain was rolling around inside his skull, only to have Bakura's voice burst through his head.

"Are you all right, Yugi?"

The sound reverberated against Yugi's skull, causing him to instantly vomit once again into the basket. Breathing hard, his rapid heartbeat throbbing through his head, Yugi couldn't bring himself to answer as his vision began to swim.

"Yugi?" Bakura said, a little more loudly and insistently.

"Don't..!" Yugi managed to send down the link, his head feeling as if he had just forced it to squeeze tighter to think the words at the spirit.

"Hm, not feeling well?" Bakura commented.

All Yugi wanted was Bakura to shut up but replied, shutting his eyes tight as his head continued to throb, "No." Pausing a moment, clutching the bed for balance as the world decided to tilt in a new direction, Yugi finally added weakly, "I think you should stay in the Ring today."

"Well, if you think that's best." the spirit answered calmly. "Just let me know when you think it's safe."

Yugi almost wept with relief as the spirit's presence faded out of his head.

----------------------------------------------

Solomon Motou glanced at the clock and frowned when he realized Yugi was going to be late for school. He tried remembering the last time that happened but came up with nothing. Usually the spirit of the Ring was in control and out of the house long before school started.

However, Solomon realized Yugi had returned home unusually late last night. He wondered what trouble the spirit might have gotten his grandson into.

Climbing the stairs to Yugi's room to investigate, Solomon was about to call out his grandson's name when he heard the distinct sound of Yugi getting sick. He threw the door open and Yugi whimpered in pain as the light from the hall hit him in the face.

Quickly closing the door Solomon dropped down to a kneeling position beside the bed and was about to ask what was wrong when the stench of alcohol hit him in the face. Pushing down his anger at the spirit of the Ring, Solomon reached out to touch Yugi gently on the forehead. The skin beneath his hand was hot and clammy but he was sure it was nothing more than the fallout of a seriously bad hangover.

At least he hoped that was all it was.

--------------------------------------------

Ryou walked slowly to school, his mind a little confused by an odd change in Atemu. He had managed to get the spirit to relax slightly by not asking about what he might want to do next about Kaiba and Seth, something they had discussed each morning on the way to school since Atemu explained his feelings. However Atemu's actions this morning were unusual enough to concern Ryou.

"I don't feel good." Atemu complained.

"You don't feel good? Is that even possible?" Ryou asked softly. The spirit had suddenly reacted badly a few moments earlier to his voice and then had dropped back into the link when they reached an open space and the early morning sunlight had washed over them.

The spirit had actually flinched when the light hit him.

"I don't know." Atemu grumbled irritably. "I just…damn. Feel like shit."

Ryou raised an eyebrow at that comment even as a stab of worry ran through him. Stopping, he asked, "Should I get home and call Malik? He might still be up."

"No, I don't think that will be necessary, Ryou." Atemu paused a moment before grumbling, "I'm just going to sleep this off. I'll talk to you later."

Ryou waited until he felt Atemu retreat into the Puzzle before continuing on to school. Deep in thought he only gave a passing glance to the now familiar Kame Game shop as he walked on.

---------------------------------------------

Yugi rested his forehead against the cool porcelain of the toilet, his eyes tightly shut and his arms resting on the rim. He had finally found a position that kept his head from spinning in hollow circles and was now wishing desperately for his mind to stop thinking about whatever it was trying to think about.

All he wanted was peace and quiet, within and without.

Knowing there was relief within his reach was not helping to quiet the words banging around his head. All he had to do was drop into his soul room to escape the pain in his head and body. Yugi assumed whatever was wrong was not life threatening since Jii-chan would have taken him straight to the hospital instead of helping him into the bathroom and forcing aspirin and juice down his throat before leaving him in peace. There was no reason for him to be conscious and suffering right now.

Yugi admitted to himself the aspirin had helped, the pain in his head was no longer triggered by every little breath he took but the temptation to just leave continued to pull at him. Yet, he hesitated, leaving his brain to continue to puzzle out why.

Bakura would certainly be able to make him feel better or at least distract him from the pain, why was he still sitting here hugging the toilet?

He refused to listen to the little voice in his head that answered it was Bakura's fault he was there in the first place.

------------------------------------------

Kaiba watched the cityscape roll by, instinctively noting any tiny changes in the view as his mind considered the state of the spirit of the Rod. Already forced to put up with Seth getting in a lather over Yugi missing a day- and forcing Kaiba to actually call the Kame Game shop to check on him- he was finding the silence that had followed the call, a silence that had become Seth's normal routine during school hours, almost unnerving.

He wondered how much of Seth's silence an attempt not to watch his Pharaoh. Not that the spirit of the Rod would admit that was what he was doing.

A frustrated sigh slipped out of Kaiba as he turned away from the view and let his head fall back. Staring at the limo's ceiling, Kaiba found his own thoughts turning to the Pharaoh's vessel. For some reason, he had caught himself staring at his white haired classmate today completely oblivious to the rest of the room. Not that he ever had a reason to pay attention to the lessons being taught, there were days he could run the class himself and his teachers were more than aware of that fact. Still, if he tuned out a class he worked on business not sit and watch a fellow student.

He almost wished Seth had been out to distract him. He wasn't sure he was willing to accept the fact he might just be physically attracted to his white-haired classmate. And he could not blame Seth for that. He knew the spirit was still annoyed that this Ryou looked like the thief in the Ring and was completely appalled his Pharaoh's spirit was forced to exist, as he had put it over the last week, in such a flawed vessel.

Forcing his thoughts back to the moment as he stepped out of the limo at Kaiba Corp., Kaiba felt Seth stirring. Immediately reaching out to the spirit Kaiba asked, "You've been quiet. Are you all right?"

It was easy to sense the spirit's surprise, which was no less than his own at the comment.

"I thought you would prefer me back in the Rod considering my actions earlier." Seth answered plainly.

Making his way to the private elevator, Kaiba asked, "Since when have you been sensitive to what I want?" Stepping in, he waited until the doors had closed before commenting, "And why haven't you spoken to your precious Pharaoh yet?"

Seth appeared next to him, a slight scowl on his face. "I've explained my actions already. Speaking to him will only open old wounds."

"You can't keep this façade up, Seth." Kaiba replied and he strode across the lobby and into his office. Setting his briefcase next to his desk, he settled into his chair and began reviewing the day's reports.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Seth cross his arms and glare. "What façade?" the spirit snarled.

Feeling some satisfaction at finally pushing Seth's buttons enough to get a reaction, Kaiba answered, "The righteous martyr one. It doesn't fit."

Seth stared at him a moment before asking irritably, "Why do you keep going on about this?"

Rubbing his forehead, feeling a now familiar frustration at Seth growing inside him, Kaiba answered, "Because if you don't do something soon, this is all going to blow up in our face."

"I'm trying to protect you…"

"I don't need your protection, Seth!" Kaiba suddenly yelled. Pushing himself to his feet he stalked over to Seth and angrily pointed out, "You can't hide what you feel from me! And all it's showing me is what I've never had! And all you do is try to suppress it! Well, it's not working, Seth, it's only making things worse."

"And what do you want me to do! Throw his vessel to the ground and take him? What will that solve?" Seth shouted back.

"Just talk to him!"

They stood glaring at one another for several minutes before Seth turned away to mutter angrily, "I cannot offer you any guaranties this will make things easier, Seto."

Kaiba sighed and returned to his chair. "I've dealt with worse." he answered truthfully.

He was not surprised when Seth disappeared without another word, leaving Kaiba alone to consider how much worse it could get.


	7. Chapter 7

**Title: **Millennium Vessels

**Summary**- The fate of the Millennium Items has been tampered with and it is up to Ryou and Yugi to straighten it out while fighting each other's yamis the whole time.

**Rating**: M

**Warnings**: M/M, Yaoi, Shonen ai, Anal, Oral.

**Pairings:** Bakura/Yugi, Seth/Atemu, Seth/Bakura/Atemu, Ryou/Yugi

**Feedback:** Please!

**Disclaimer: **Yu-Gi-Oh is owned by Kazuki Takahashi. I do not make any money off these stories and only write for my enjoyment and the enjoyment of others.

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Millennium Vessels

Chapter Seven: Reunions

Yugi shuffled his deck as he watched unobtrusively a few of his classmates cluster in a group by the windows. He recognized two of them, Jonouchi and Honda, and could just hear them talking about some wild party that had happened a few nights ago. From what he could gather, the party was the reason the two of them had missed school yesterday and only now were they able to give their friends all the gory details about said party and the aftereffects.

Pulling his attention back to the cards in his hands, Yugi tuned out the conversation. It was reminding him why he had missed school and how miserable he had been for most of the day. He still expected to experience that odd brain shifting around in his head feeling that had plagued him all day yesterday any time he moved and the eye piercing pain that went with it. He was relieved though that his mouth no longer felt like it was stuffed with old gym socks.

He still wondered what it was that made him that sick.

He glanced up at the clock at the front of the room to check how much time he had before lunch was over. He felt a little out of step with things and could not figure out why Bakura had actually bothered bringing him to school today. Yes, he had felt better when he woke up this morning but not that great, so he had been more than surprised when he suddenly found himself sitting at his desk before his first class started. And early at that.

Thoughtful of Bakura to get him to school even if he still felt under the weather. Yugi had to admit, it wasn't as if he could afford to miss a day the way his grades were this year.

Stifling a yawn, Yugi was startled when a voice questioned softly, "Do you play Duel Monsters?"

Turning, Yugi found his new classmate, Ryou Bakura, looking at him hopefully. He could feel the spirit of the Ring stirring at the sound of Ryou's voice but instead of taking over, he seemed to settle just at the edge of Yugi's awareness.

"Um, yes I do." Yugi answered uncertainly.

"Would it be okay if I play against you?" Ryou said as he smiled brightly. "Sorry if I'm disturbing you but I haven't had a chance to play with anyone since I moved here. I'm Ryou by the way."

Yugi waited a moment to see if there was any response from Bakura then said, when the spirit remained where he was, "I guess so. I'm Yugi."

"Hi!' Ryou responded as he grabbed a chair and pulled it up to the desk so he could sit opposite Yugi. Settling into the chair, Ryou bent over sideways to dig into his book bag that was leaning against the side of the desk.

Yugi had to restrain himself from reaching out to tough Ryou's thick, wavy white hair; hair that was just like the spirit of the Ring's. He wondered briefly what hair like that would feel like in real life.

Finally straightening, Ryou produced his deck and a field mat, spreading it out over the table. He set his deck in the center and asked, "Do you want to play by tournament rules or just play?"

"Tournament is fine." Yugi answered as he placed his own deck next to Ryou. Picking up his opponent's deck to shuffle it he asked curiously, "Have you played in any tournaments?"

He was surprised when Ryou blushed and ducked his head in what looked like embarrassment, the hair just barely covering a slight blush on his cheeks. "A few when I lived in Egypt, and I won at Pegasus's Duelist Kingdom competition." Ryou said slowly.

"You won Duelist Kingdom?" Yugi said in surprise.

Ryou nodded.

Yugi felt a happy smile cross his face as he said, "That's cool! I've always wanted to know how I would do against someone at that level." Handing the deck back and retrieving his own he added, a little self-consciously, "Hopefully I can give you a little bit of a challenge."

A shy grin crossed Ryou's face. "I'm just happy to find someone to play against. Let's duel!"

--------------------------------------

Yugi was giving Ryou more than just a little bit of a challenge. His occult deck was wreaking havoc and Ryou found himself immediately on the defensive.

Yugi was proving to be as good as Atemu.

He was also proving to be nothing like Ryou had expected. He knew Atemu was going to be angry with him for getting close after what happened the first day of class but Ryou had been watching Yugi closely all week. He found that the tomb robber left Yugi in charge during school, though he suspected the spirit of the Ring would take over if Yugi were threatened; the presence of the Puzzle was probably what set him off the first day. He knew Atemu would react in a similar fashion to the sudden appearance of a Millennium Item.

However, Ryou noticed the only person who interacted with Yugi during school was Anzu, and she was slightly defensive whenever she approached him, only relaxing when she was sure it was Yugi. Ryou never saw anyone else go near Yugi; instead, everyone purposely avoided him, or in the case of Jonouchi and Honda, hovered nearby waiting for the switch at the end of the day. And Yugi seemed quite aware of their actions. Ryou often caught sight of a lonely, lost look crossing Yugi's face; a look Ryou remembered seeing on his own face after his father and Amane died in a car accident, a look that had not disappeared until Atemu entered his life.

And it was a look he couldn't help but respond to. He found himself wanting to help Yugi in the same way Atemu had helped him.

Putting his monsters into defense mode and ending his turn, Ryou sat back and contemplated his next move as Yugi drew. He felt Atemu shift out and braced himself when the spirit asked, "Ryou, what are you doing?"

Ryou resisted the impulse to shake his head when he answered, "Its okay. It's just a friendly duel."

"You shouldn't be doing this, Ryou." the spirit stated.

"It's just a game, Atemu. I'm all right."

"I don't like it. I don't trust the tomb robber."

"He's not the tomb robber." Ryou pointed out.

Ignoring Atemu for a moment, Ryou turned his attention back to the game just as a delighted smile lit Yugi's face and he said, "I sacrifice the Headless Knight and Jowgen to summon the Black Magician!"

"What!" Atemu's shout startled Ryou, but before he could turn toward the spirit he found himself standing next to his body, watching Atemu reach out to snatch the card that had just been laid on the table.

Yugi gave a startled shout that was suddenly cut off as the Ring flashed under his white school shirt. Yugi's expression seemed to grow sharper, the eyes shifting toward a brownish tone as he grabbed the wrist of the hand holding the card.

"How dare you!" Atemu shouted, even as Ryou sensed him drawing power from the Puzzle, the Eye beginning to glow on his forehead. The emotions bursting out of Atemu were a tangled mix of fury, heartache, amazement and confusion and for a moment overwhelmed Ryou; Atemu had never let his feelings loose like this and had never taken over without some kind of warning before.

"Do you think I want him in my deck?" Yugi's voice was now the same as it had been on the first day of school and now Ryou had no doubts this was the tomb robber Malik had talked about. His voice was angry but Ryou realized even through his confusion there was something unusual about his anger.

What was it about this card that had set them both off like this?

Catching movement out of the corner of his eye, Ryou glanced back and saw the group by the window watching the exchange closely. "Atemu!" Ryou said under his breath in warning.

Atemu did not respond, nor did he finch when the tomb robber suddenly pulled him close to snarl, "Don't you think I haven't tried to get rid of that damn card? Do you really think I want to be reminded about what happened, about what he did to me?" Suddenly slumping back in his chair without letting go of Atemu he said in a soft, almost defeated, voice as he stared at the card, "But he always comes back. And he always comes to my vessel's hand no matter what I do to stop him."

The power around Atemu seemed to drop and Ryou could sense a small amount of uncertainty leaking out of the spirit, when a voice snapped, "What the hell are you doing, tomb robber."

Without looking at the figure that now stood beside him, the spirit muttered without any force, "Fuck off, priest."

Ryou sensed Atemu stiffen and his breathing growing short as he looked up at the tall form, asking softly, hopefully, "Seth?"

The spirit of the Ring stared at Atemu a moment in surprise, and then suddenly laughed. "What, you didn't know?" He looked up at the frown on Seto Kaiba's face and said, "You mean to tell me you haven't spoken to your precious Pharaoh yet? Shit, I'm amazed you didn't just throw him on the floor and fuck him blind the first day considering how you two used to go at it."

"Shut the fuck up, Bakura!" Kaiba snapped.

"Hey rich boy- back off!" a voice behind Ryou called out

The group by the window started moving toward them but before they got close, the tomb robber grabbed the card out of Atemu's hand, swept Yugi's cards up off the desk, and snagged the backpack behind his chair. "I can handle him, Jou."

The blond glared at Kaiba as he said, "Aw come on, he's been asking for it, Bakura."

"Like you've got a chance, mutt." Kaiba answered in a cold flat voice. Frowning, Ryou realized Kaiba now looked a little thinner and younger than he had a moment ago. He was beginning to feel a little dazed by all of this. And from the feelings he was getting from Atemu, so was the spirit.

The tomb robber chuckled low in his throat as he grabbed Jonouchi and brought him to a halt. "Leave him. He's doing more damage to himself right now than anything you could do to him." Pushing the blond ahead of him, the spirit said, his voice heavy with sarcasm, "Enjoy yourselves."

A little unsteady from all the confusion coming off Atemu, Ryou looked over at Kaiba who was watching the group leave with a hard glare. He was startled when Kaiba glanced down at Atemu and said with a surprising lack of emotion, "You should get to your next class; it will only play into that idiot's hands if you get sent to the principle's office." Turning without a backward glance, Kaiba strode quickly from the room.

"Atemu?" Ryou asked carefully.

Atemu took a deep, slightly shaky breath before saying firmly, "He's correct, you need to get to class." Standing up, Atemu looked at him and added in a matter of fact voice, "I should not have interfered, forgive me. Just let me know when you get home."

Ryou opened him mouth to tell Atemu he was not at fault when he suddenly found himself back in control of his own body, Atemu's presence quickly fading into the Puzzle. Sighing, Ryou cleaned up his cards and the playing mat and made his way to his next class.

He hoped Malik had a few hours to kill tonight because he really needed someone to talk to later about this.


	8. Chapter 8

**Title: **Millennium Vessels

**Rating**: M

**Warnings**: WIP, M/M, Yaoi, Shonen ai, Anal, Oral, **Rape in a later chapter.**

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Chapter Eight- A Yami's Life

Mokuba hurried over to the Ferrari, tossing his book bag into the back before dropping into the seat. Strapping himself in, he smiled over at his brother and was about to launch into his normal summary of his day when he realized the person beside him was not his brother.

Well, at least not all of his brother.

"Seth?" Mokuba asked incredulously.

"Yes?" the spirit of the Rod answered calmly as he slipped the car in gear.

"Nii-sama's letting you drive the Ferrari?"

"I would think that was obvious." Seth replied as he carefully pulled the high performance vehicle into traffic.

For a moment Mokuba was silent as he stared at Seth. That was fine with the spirit. He had extensive practical experience at operating a car- the first thing Seto had done once he accepted Seth's presence was to make sure he had all the tools he needed to protect Mokuba if something happened including how to make a fast getaway in any type of vehicle- but it was not enough for Seth to feel entirely comfortable behind the wheel.

"Did something happen to Nii-sama?" Mokuba asked nervously.

Seth was not sure exactly how to answer that question. He knew Seto was angry at him but that did not explain why he had left Seth in charge to pick up Mokuba.

"He is…" Seth paused, trying to figure out how to phrase his answer. "He is fine. He is angry at me for something that happened at school today, but I believe that is all."

Mokuba frowned. "That doesn't explain why you're driving, Seth."

Sighing, Seth answered, "He is not talking to me right now." the spirit answered irritably. "I am hoping he will switch places with me when we reach the mansion. You can ask him then what is going on."

Giving Seth a shrewd, sympathetic look, Mokuba asked, "And then let you know what he said?

"No." Seth said, shaking his head. "He will tell me himself when he is ready." Seth felt a grimace cross his face as he added, "And he does have a good reason to be angry at me right now."

"What did you do?" Mokuba inquired. Eyes narrowing in thought, he asked, "Does this have to do with that minor indiscretion you mentioned a while back?"

"Yes." The spirit didn't offer anything more and, for once, Mokuba did not push. Seth knew Mokuba would later once he had more facts from his brother, but for now Seth was grateful for the silence.

He was not looking forward to what was going to be said once Seto did decided to talk to him again. And he was not looking forward to having to explain why he had taken over without asking then suddenly abandoned that control because of one simple word.

His name, spoken by someone who had once loved him, body and soul.

No, he was definitely not looking forward to explaining that.

--------------------------------------------------

Atemu wandered through the Puzzle's confusing maze without getting lost, without ever getting lost. He always knew where in the Puzzle he was and could never reach those parts he wanted to explore until the Puzzle was ready to let him. Though tonight he had no real destination in mind.

He simply walked as he tried to straighten out the confusion in his own mind.

When Yugi played the Black Magician card, Atemu had acted instinctively to protect it, trying to remove it from the Thief King's influence, before all the memories connected to it unfolded in his mind. He had already remembered how Bakura had ended up in the Ring but the memories following that event had not revealed themselves until that moment.

And those memories had made him want to take the card even more.

But something about the Thief King's reactions had not been quite right, had somehow been far from what he had braced himself to expect. The spirit had actually sounded defeated and somewhat desperate to get rid of the card and yet had ended up taking it back.

He could not have expected that, especially now that he remembered who the Black Magician was.

And then there was Seth.

Atemu would never have expected his High Priest to run like that. That wasn't the man he used to know.

Atemu stopped and looked up into the confusion of corridors and doors above him, an accurate reflections of his emotions right now. Just thinking about Seth's action's made it difficult for Atemu to move again. He found himself wanting to stay right where he was, wanted to ignore what had happened and what it meant, but a tug against his mind force him into motion.

Ryou had entered the Puzzle and Atemu would never let his host wander alone in here.

That could be more than dangerous.

He caught up with Ryou just as the boy stepped out of the plaza area and into the darker corridor Atemu was in, drawn to his location through the link they shared. Ryou appeared startled when Atemu slipped up silently beside him and Atemu winced, upset with himself for putting Ryou on edge.

A guilty look washed over Ryou's face as he muttered, "Sorry." while dropping his head, a slight blush warming the color of his cheeks.

Atemu gently tilted the boy's head back up as he asked, "Is something wrong?"

"I just wanted to check on how you were doing."

Atemu was surprised and asked, feeling a little confused, "Why would you be worried about me, Ryou?"

The blush grew a little deeper. "I, um…" Ryou glanced at him carefully out of the corner of his eye then suddenly sighed. "I didn't know if you wanted someone to talk to about what happened."

Atemu dropped his hand away from Ryou and turned away. He was uncertain as to what emotions might be visible in his eyes at the moment since he was unsure exactly what he was feeling.

And he had already done enough damage today where Ryou was concerned.

"I'm still not sure if I am ready to talk, Ryou." Moving away, Atemu looked back up into the Puzzle as he said, "I'm beginning to doubt my feelings about Seth. The Seth in my memories would have answered me honestly when I called out to him. He would not have left things for his host to deal with."

"Maybe he doesn't remember as much as you are expecting him to." Ryou commented reasonably as he stepped to his side. For a moment, Atemu sensed Ryou reaching out an arm as if to embrace him before hesitating. Through their link, the spirit of the Puzzle could feel his host's confusion about how to comfort him.

Atemu's first thought was to reassure Ryou that he would be fine but his emotions were not under control and he knew his words would not match what Ryou would feel in the link.

Instead, Atemu surprised himself when he leaned into the offered contact, letting his head drop to rest on Ryou's shoulder. For a moment Ryou stood frozen in place and Atemu could not help but to smile in amusement even as his host carefully wrapped him in a hug as if afraid he might break the spirit.

A sigh slipped from Atemu as he let his mind be calmed by the link even as he rested in Ryou's arms. "Thank you for being so patient with me, Ryou." Atemu murmured.

"I will always be here when you need me, Atemu." Ryou promised softly. "I want you to know that."

"I know." Atemu answered even as he thanked the gods for allowing him to share the soul of one such as Ryou.

He doubted if he would survive in this world if he were with anyone else but Ryou.

--------------------------------------

The spirit of the Ring followed Jonouchi to his apartment, giving the blond only a small portion of his attention. The rest of it had turned inward to try and figure out why the hell he had reacted like that in front of Pharaoh.

For that matter, he wanted to know why he had let Yugi play the Pharaoh's vessel in the first place. It wasn't as if that damn card was going to stay hidden in the deck when _he _was there, why would it. Bakura never went for the whole 'heart of the card' crap Pegasus had spouted before losing the Eye to him, but the spirit could not deny the fact that one card had a mind of his own.

And Bakura would not put it past that damn magician that he might just be haunting him for the fun of it. Hell, he should be in Pharaoh's deck, not his.

Why in the gods name had he taken it back?

Deciding that thinking was only making him more confused and pissed off, he stopped to wait for Jonouchi to unlock the door to his apartment, Bakura shifted Yugi's backpack to a more comfortable position and gathered a little magic from the Ring. He had no intention of putting up with Jonouchi's father right now- he seriously needed a beer and the quickest way to get one was through the old man's stash. However, he didn't need to bother. For once, the apartment was quiet.

"Shit, wonder where he went this time." Jonouchi grumbled as he tossed his book bag toward his room before heading for the kitchen. Bakura didn't bother following him and instead shuck the backpack and school jacket before sprawling across Jonouchi's bed. Hearing the blond enter the room he looked over and caught the beer tossed his way.

"So, what the hell was that all about during lunch?" Jonouchi asked as he dropped onto the floor, his back against his dresser.

Leaning against the wall the bed was shoved against Bakura answered, "Nothing, just a stupid game." Tilting his head back he guzzled a large portion within the can before focusing back on Jonouchi, only to find the blond scowling at him.

"You want me to rephrase that?" Bakura snarled.

Letting out an annoyed breath, Jonouchi responded, "Nah, don't bother. I still remember the last time you rephrased something."

For a while they drank the beer, not bothering to talk, and it wasn't until they each started on their third can that Bakura begin to unwind. A pleasant buzz was beginning to wash through Yugi's body and he realized with annoyance it was time to get the runt home. Standing, he grabbed the backpack and jacket and headed out without a word. Jonouchi, used to Bakura's silence, climbed to his feet and followed him to the door, giving him a slightly slurred, "See ya tomorrow." before closing the door and locking it.

Bakura would rather stay and drink himself into a stupor and maybe do a few other things with the blond, but unfortunately it was a school night and he didn't need the idiot Priest tracking him down if Yugi didn't show up for school tomorrow. He had heard the phone call the elder Motou had received yesterday after his host managed to drag himself back into his bedroom while forgetting to shut the door. Yugi had dropped into a half sleep and Bakura was able to listen around his host to the half of the conversation going on in the living room downstairs.

It had not been hard to figure out what the discussion was about.

He didn't need to give Seth a reason to make an appearance anywhere other than school. That was bad enough.

Ignoring the old man completely once he got inside, he headed straight for the bedroom and shut the door before falling onto Yugi's bed. Letting his soul settle into the hallway separating his soul room from his host, Bakura waited for Yugi to open his door.

If he couldn't drink himself into a stupor tonight, he'd find another way to entertain himself. It wasn't as if the runt would deny him a little play time.

And Bakura had yet to tire of the novelty of fucking someone who looked like Pharaoh into submission.

The only thing better would be fucking Pharaoh himself.

He'd have to work on that one.


	9. Chapter 9

**Title: **Millennium Vessels

**Rating**: M

**Warnings**: WIP, M/M, Yaoi, Shonen ai, Anal, Oral, **Rape in a later chapter.**

**--------------------------------------- **

Chapter Nine- A New Game 

"You are angry with me."

Seto didn't bother to correct Seth's statement since he wasn't quite sure how to respond to it. He was not angry with Seth; nor was it anger that had caused him to switch with the spirit before the end of school. He understood why Seth had retreated after hearing his Pharaoh speak his name- he had felt the sudden surge of emotion that shot through Seth, and Seth's surprise at the strength of those emotion- and knew he had simply done what he believed best to protect Seto.

No, what he was feeling was something else entirely, something a part of him actually shrank away from examining though he knew it was an issue he needed to face, one he realized now he should have dealt with years ago.

Especially after yesterday's little encounter in the lunchroom.

He was beginning to sense how much worse things might get. Still, he was the one who had insisted Seth confront his Pharaoh even over Seth's protests; there was no one else to blame but himself if a few well- buried monsters suddenly rose from the dead.

He should have buried them better.

"Nii-sama?" he heard Mokuba ask.

Glancing across the worktable to where Mokuba had spread his homework, Seto found his little brother watching him closely, a slight frown on his face. Settling back in his chair with a sigh, Seto said, "Go ahead. Ask."

Mokuba stared in surprise even as Seto felt Seth's amazement wash over him. Seto rolled his eyes. "I do answer questions from time to time." he remarked to both of them.

"You don't usually volunteer to answer them though." Mokuba said. "Are you all right Nii'sama?

"I'm fine, Mokuba." Seto answered, and realized too late it was the wrong answer to give.

"Sure you are." Mokuba responded angrily. Seto winced inwardly at his brother's tone as Mokuba pointed out, "If you were okay I wouldn't need to ask you that." Letting out a frustrated breath, Mokuba added in a softer tone of voice as he played with his pen, "I'm just getting worried about you and Seth. You've both been more moody than usual."

Seto knew Seth was listening in on the conversation, but the spirit wisely keep his mouth shut.

"There are some issues that have come up that we need to deal with." Seto finally said.

"What kind of issues?" Mokuba asked, then scowled, obviously catching an echo on his face of the emotions he was trying to hide. "Or is this where you stop answering questions?"

"It's personal Mokuba. It's just something we need to deal with on our own."

Seto could tell it was not an answer Mokuba was happy with but his brother simply nodded and said, "Okay, but if either of you need someone to talk to, feel free to talk to me." Mokuba then shook his head and started working on his homework again as he muttered, "You two keep way too much bottled up sometimes."

_You have no idea, Mokuba. _Seth said across the link as Seto attempted to get back to his own work.

-----------------------------------------------

Yugi almost jumped out of his skin when Bakura suddenly appeared beside him, dressed in a school uniform similar to the one he wore, near the end of his first class. In all the time Yugi had worn the Ring, Bakura had never put in an appearance in the real world without switching him for his own protection into his soul room first. This was the first time Yugi had ever seen Bakura outside and never with such a thoughtful look on his face. Yugi wasn't quite sure how to respond.

Actually, he found he was a little afraid of how he might respond to Bakura's attention, and part of his mind rebelled slightly to the conflict that thought created. It was one thing encountering Bakura in his mind, it was another to see his lean form casually lounging against the window ledge paying attention to the lesson being taught.

And then there was the fact Bakura only appeared during school hours when he felt Yugi was being threatened.

But it was quickly apparent that a threat was not why Bakura had appeared. The spirit's attention was focused on what was being discussed and almost seemed surprised when the class ended and the other students moved on to their next class. He even ignored Ryou as he gathered up his books and slipped out; remaining where he was studying the notes on the board the teacher was quickly erasing.

Not knowing what else to do, Yugi stood and cautiously approached the spirit. "Umm…" Yugi started to say when Bakura turned and finally looked at him.

"Sorry." the spirit of the Ring said, straightening and walking toward the door. Yugi hurried after him, giving the spirit a curious look once they were in the hall.

Bakura smiled slightly. "Thought I might be able to help you out with your schoolwork." A slight scowl crossed his face as he continued. "Though none of it was making any sense. Did it make sense to you?"

"Umm, a little." Yugi answered then asked carefully, "Why would you want to help me with my schoolwork?"

The spirit shrugged. "That little encounter with Pharaoh and Seth just got me thinking, that's all."

"About what?" Yugi found himself actually curious to hear the answer.

"I've been protecting you a little too well, haven't I." Bakura stated as he watched the students filling the hall make their way to their next class. Before Yugi could protest the spirit's statement, Bakura pointed out, "You were enjoying yourself playing against Pharaoh's vessel until we interfered."

Yugi wanted to reassure the spirit he was okay with that but found the words sticking his tongue in place. Biting his lower lip he glanced away, only to turn back worriedly when Bakura gave a low growl.

Stopping in front of Yugi, the spirit crossed his arms and looked down at him. Instinctively, Yugi hugged his books tight against his chest and fought the unexpected impulse to back away.

But why would he be afraid of Bakura after all the spirit had done for him?

An expression Yugi couldn't identify crossed the spirit's face as he stated, "Maybe I should start protecting you from me."

Yugi tried to answer again but still found himself unable to speak.

Bakura glanced around at the quickly empting hallway and took a step back, moving aside to let Yugi go. Dropping his arms with a slight shake of his head, Bakura said, "You should get to class, I wouldn't want you to be late. If it's all right though I wouldn't mind staying out."

"I don't mind." Yugi answered hastily.

The spirit raised an eyebrow, a doubtful look on his face. He sighed, and there was a tone of regret in his voice as he spoke. "Maybe it would be best if we just work on this. Just call on me when it is all right for us to talk about this or if you have need of me." Without another work, Bakura faded away, both visibly and within Yugi's mind, his presence disappearing into the Millennium Ring.

Yugi stood in the hallway, feeling suddenly a little lost and vulnerable without the spirit in the back of his mind. But the ringing of the bell broke into his thoughts and he automatically moved on to his next class, unable to figure out why he also felt relief that Bakura was gone, even as he wanted to beg the spirit's forgiveness for whatever he had done to hurt his protector's feelings.

--------------------------------------------

Grabbing his stuff for home Ryou groaned in despair as he thought about all the studying he would need to do tonight to get ready for tomorrow's test in history. He knew Atemu would not bother him; he could sense the spirit wandering around the Puzzle just as he had last night, though the spirit's emotions were certainly much calmer than they had been.

Ryou shut his locker and settled his backpack a little more comfortably before glancing around at the end of school hustle and bustle. As much as he wanted to talk more to the spirit, it was probably best if he left Atemu alone and got his homework done. Considering how little he had actually paid attention to today's class while he thought about the spirit, Ryou was going to need all the study time he could manage tonight.

Moving into the current of students flowing out of the school, Ryou managed to see Yugi at his locker out of the corner of his eye just as Jonouchi sauntered up to him.

If it hadn't been for the surprised look on both their faces when Yugi turned, Ryou probably would have just continued on. But Jonouchi's startled step back and Yugi's look of utter confusion pulled Ryou to a stop to watch.

Yugi's head turned slightly, and Ryou was sure it was to speak with the spirit of the Ring. A shift in Yugi's posture was the only sign something had changed, but it was enough for Jonouchi to notice and he mumbled apologetically, "Sorry, didn't mean to get you confused with the runt, Bakura."

Yugi's eyes narrowed. "I suggest using that brain of yours next time before opening your mouth, idiot." he responded in a low rumble.

"Hey, I'm sorry okay!" the blond exclaimed, his annoyance clear in his voice. "Look, are you coming or not?"

"No. You'll need to find someone else." Yugi turned to grab the backpack and slammed the locker door shut. "And I suggest next time you find someone else to annoy." he stated as he walked away.

Jonouchi glared at Yugi's retreating back a few moments before muttering, "Well, fuck you."

Watching Jonouchi as he spun around, disappeared into the crowded hall, Ryou failed to notice Yugi had circled back and was now standing beside him, waiting patiently for him to acknowledge he was there.

Tensing as he glanced down, Ryou felt Atemu shift his awareness a little closer as he observed the switch between the spirit and Yugi. Yugi blinked at him uncertainly, apparently at a loss as to what to say.

Smiling slightly, Ryou simply said, "Hi."

Yugi tilted his head again, his attention moving to a spot to his left before turning back with a tentative smile. "Hi. Um, sorry I didn't mean to bother you."

Ryou shrugged. "That's okay." Curious as to why Yugi was there, Ryou asked, "Actually, is there something Bakura wanted? He was the one who walked you over here." He let his gaze move to where Yugi suddenly looked and said honestly, "I kind of feel like I'm being rude ignoring him if he's still here."

Yugi shook his head in amazement as his smile became more genuine. "No. Actually he was only trying to help me out. Bringing me over here was his way of apologizing for interrupting our duel yesterday." Ryou was sure words were being exchanged then Yugi said with a slight laugh, blushing slightly, "And you're not being rude, he said. It's just that Bakura tends to be a bit impulsive sometimes."

Unable to help himself, Ryou commented with a chuckle, "I know how that goes."

Yugi's regard became inquisitive as Ryou remained standing next to him and finally asked with a touch of amusement, "Do you mind if I ask, before anything new interrupts us, how long you've worn the Millennium Puzzle?"

"I don't mind at all." Realizing the halls were becoming empty, Ryou said, "A few years now." as he began walking toward the exit. "I got it while I was in Egypt. My sister and I often stayed with my father when he was on a dig and on one of his trips into town I happened to find the Puzzle in a shop selling gifts and things."

"Your father is an archeologist?"

Ryou nodded, "He was. He and my sister died in a car accident a while back."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Yugi responded sincerely.

"Thank you but it's all right." Ryou reached up and cradled the Puzzle in his hand a moment as he explained, "Luckily, I had already solved the Puzzle when it happened. If it hadn't been for Atemu helping me I don't think I would have survived losing them."

"So your spirit protects you too?" Yugi asked.

Ryou had to grin at that. "Oh yes. He's saved me several times." Stopping once they stepped outside, Ryou asked, "Where do you live?"

"With my grandfather. He owns the Kame Game Shop." Yugi said.

"I pass by there on the way to school!" Ryou exclaimed in delight. "I've been wanting to stop there but I haven't had a chance yet."

"Well if you want I'm sure grandpa would be willing to keep the store open a little later tonight so you can look around." Yugi said then laughed lightly, "He's always willing to entertain new customers."

"It's a deal." Ryou responded, ignoring Atemu's halfhearted reminder that he had a test tomorrow. He knew Atemu's words were just a formality; the spirit was just as interested in seeing the game shop as he was.

It did not take long to reach Yugi's place and Ryou followed his fellow classmate into the shop as Yugi called out, "Grandpa, I'm home."

A surprised "Yugi?" was heard just before the speaker appeared in the doorway leading to the back. Stepping around the counter, man stopped and looked at them curiously as he said in what seemed to be a cautious voice, "Hello. Didn't realize you'd be home this early, Yugi. Who's your friend there?"

"That's okay." Yugi said then shifted aside to introduce him. "Grandpa, this is Ryou Bakura. He's…" Yugi's voice trailed off as a look of utter shock crossed his grandfather's face.

"Grandpa?" Yugi asked, worriedly.

Ryou was about to take a step forward when he felt Atemu reacting in the same way as Yugi's grandfather seemed to be. He was surprised when Atemu asked carefully, "Ryou, could we switch for a moment?"

"Sure." he answered, and quickly found himself in Atemu's place.

From the startled looks on both Yugi and his grandfather's face, they had seen the switch. Atemu stood straight and grinned as a brillant smile crossed the old man's face.

"It is good to see you again." Atemu said with a slight bow towards Yugi's grandfather.

Both Ryou and Yugi stared at the old man in shock as he answered with a slight bow of his own and said, "I'm glad to meet you again as well, Pharaoh."


End file.
